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When Ed Vaizey, the Culture Minister, was a young child, he went to a modern art museum with his mother and asked her which artist was responsible for the air-conditioning unit.

How far our museums and galleries have come. Today, the best focus on families, providing children with dynamic displays and hands-on experiences. Tullie House Museum & Art Gallery in Carlisle is one of the most exciting. Here you can you fire a Roman weapon, climb Hadrian’s Wall and sneak into a badger’s sett (a disclaimer: the badgers are stuffed).

It is the thoroughly deserving winner of this year’s Telegraph Family Friendly Museum Award, run with Kids in Museums. The contest, which received a record-breaking 850 nominations, is the largest of its kind and the only one in which visitors pick the winner.

Anna Smalley, the learning and engagement manager at Tullie House, collected the award at a ceremony at the Telegraph offices last week, also attended by Vaizey, who gave an entertaining speech, the television historian Dan Snow and the children’s author Damian Dibben.

Hilary Wade, Dan Snow and Anna SmalleyCredit:
Andrew Crowley

“I can’t believe it,” she says. “We’ve been running family programmes for so long and we know our families appreciate us. This is an award for them as well as for us, to thank them for their continued support and for making our programme so special.”

Tullie House has a rich history; it opened more than 120 years ago as a library, museum and college for science and art.

Today, it features collections of paintings, natural sciences, social history and archaeology, placing interactivity at its heart. One visitor says: “It’s one of the best museums I have been to and, being a history teacher, I’ve been to a lot. The kids were occupied the whole way around and the adults didn’t feel nervous about letting them touch things. The adults got a lot from being able to touch things as well. Fabulous.”

Tullie House prides itself on making displays as engaging as they are educational. The current big exhibition is Eye for Colour. “It’s very interactive, very hands on,” says Smalley. Children can learn what their favourite colour says about them (those who like blue tend to be calm; those who like yellow want to be important). They can also sit in a room where the light changes colour to see how it affects their mood.

Tullie House colour exhibitionCredit:
Charlie Hedley

“We are always trying to evolve with technology,” she says, “but we’ve found that children like things they can touch. Often they prefer hands-on displays to hi‑tech digital ones, so they really can immerse themselves.” Exhibitions will have panels on the wall with information, but there will often be something for children to do.

It’s something that Vaizey, who admits to being a bit of a “handful” when he was taken to museums as a child, might have appreciated. He certainly does now that he has children. Recently, he took his son Joseph, eight, to the National Gallery, where he was told off for taking a photo. (The rules on photography have since been relaxed, much to Vaizey’s delight.) The more informal atmosphere of Tullie House might suit him well.

Ed Vaizey on museums

Everyone remembers their first trip to the museum. Whether it was with your family on a Sunday afternoon or piling into the school bus with your classmates – it’s an iconic part of the British childhood.

Ed Vaizey, Culture MinisterCredit:
Rex

It’s important that our children experience culture at an early age and museums are a fantastic way of doing this. The long-term benefits of this have been extensively backed up by research. We know early cultural experiences have seen improved cognitive and emotional development, stronger family bonds, a stronger sense of cultural identity, and a better self-esteem. They can also have a positive impact on how children view the world as they grow up, minimising the cultural prejudices that exist in our society.

In my job, I regularly hear from museums professionals about what makes a museum great. But I think it is important and refreshing to hear from young people about what they most enjoy about their museums – children bring different ideas and perspectives and we can learn a great deal from these fresh young minds.

Kids in Museums are leading the way in demonstrating how important museums are to our children, and the impact they have on the way they learn and view the world. The Government are proud to support their initiatives, such as Museums Takeover Day and the Family Friendly Museums. This year’s shortlist shows the range of museums providing a warm welcome to families across the country and becoming family holiday destinations. During difficult times, it’s also great to see a range of positive approaches to working with local communities, such as flexible family ticketing.

Museums are there to stimulate conversations

Museums are for more than just observation. They stimulate conversations between the generations and provide an interactive learning experience for young people across the country. It’s vital that we not only provide children with these experiences, but also listen to their ideas.

Museums that made the shortlist

The Diving Museum, Gosport, Hampshire

Manned entirely by volunteers, this museum features displays of early helmets, vintage diving suits and equipment used by James Bond. It also made the shortlist for our award last year.

National Coal Mining Museum for England, Wakefield, West Yorkshire

At the National Coal Mining Museum, you can take an underground tour and meet a miner, complete with hard hat and battery lamp. The museum offers plenty of activities for children, too, from craft fairs to writing workshops.

Royal Albert Memorial Museum & Art Gallery, Exeter, Devon

This museum is packed with things to do and see, from exhibitions of fine art to a programme to commemorate the centenary of the First World War. About 5,000 local historical items are also on display. There are activities for under-fives every Tuesday.

The Winding House, Caerphilly, Wales

The winner of a new Kids in Museums award this year, recognising its efforts to engage with the community, visitors can research their family history or tour one of the current exhibitions – from a commemoration of Caerphilly’s involvement in the First World War to displays looking at the history of the area. The museum also features a Grade II-listed winding engine that was used to take miners up and down the lift shafts.